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Robert Dalton (left) and Vietnam Dang are facing charges in superior court for the Feb. 21 burglary of a Windham home. Dalton intends to plead guilty. Dang is fighting his charges. (COURTESY)

Windham burglary suspects on different paths in court

By JAMES A. KIMBLEUnion Leader Correspodent

BRENTWOOD — A pair of burglary suspects shooed away from an empty house by a 64-year-old Windham woman in February are taking different paths with their criminal cases in superior court.

Robert Dalton, 35, of Lowell, Mass. intends to plead guilty to burglary, robbery and conspiracy to commit burglary for the Feb. 21 break-in at a home on West Shore Road in Windham.

Dalton is expected to be sentenced after changing his plea on Sept. 10 in Rockingham County Superior Court. He will serve one to three years in prison in exchange for pleading guilty to burglary, robbery and conspiracy to commit burglary, according to the terms of his agreement.

His alleged partner, Vietnam Dang, 34, of Worcester, Mass., is asking a judge to throw out the identification the woman, Katherine Reader, made of him claiming it was essentially a one-man police line up.

Reader, a neighbor to the burglarized home, discovered the break-in and confronted the two men with her broom, prompting them to flee, according to police. Dalton pushed Reader to the ground and Dang ran from the scene, according to prosecutors.

Windham police Capt. Edward Fedele found Dang walking along Range Road, and detained him after questioning. He then brought Dang back to Reader, according to court papers.

She identified him as one of the burglars. Dalton already had been caught by police after his car had gotten stuck in the snow, police said.

Dang’s lawyer, Carl Olson, argued in court papers that bringing Dang to Reader for a one-man line up was too suggestive to be reliable — and violated his client’s right to a fair trial. Olson wants a judge to toss out the identification.Prosecutors have yet to respond to the request. Dang and Dalton remain free on bail.

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas. There's snow on the ground (in some areas) and the spirit of the season in the air. We hope you can spare some time during this busy season to get out as...